Six Questions About Iranian President Hassan Rouhani

In both his pre-election pronouncements and post-election promises, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has spoken encouragingly of "moderation," "reform" and upholding "the rights of the people...in a free Iran." Indeed, in the run-up to his speech Tuesday to the UN General Assembly, Rouhani has engaged in what this week's Economist characterized as a "remarkable" and "unprecedented" charm offensive, including the release of political prisoners.

Yet, this charm offensive is belied by ongoing human rights violations as documented by Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran. His report describes these violations as "widespread, systemic and systematic," characterization that he recently reaffirmed in his discussions with me.

What follows is a human rights index -- an inventory of serious human rights abuses and the corresponding actions required -- to turn Iran from a republic of fear to what Rouhani himself called a free Iran. Indeed, the queries below serve as a litmus test for the authenticity of Rouhani's commitment to justice and human rights.

1. Executions
Prior to Rouhani's election, Iran had the highest per-capita execution rate in the world, with Dr. Shaheed expressing his alarm at "the rate of executions in the country."

Yet, executions have not only continued unabated since Rouhani's election but have actually escalated, with some 100 Iranians executed in the first month alone following his election. Moreover, a large number of prisoners are killed by the regime in secret, such that the number of executions is almost certainly higher.

Query: Will President Rouhani declare a moratorium on executions?

2. Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhumane, and Degrading Treatment
Dr. Shaheed's Report describes the horrific reality of torture deployed to coerce confessions -- which are then used to justify trumped-up charges -- while a general culture of impunity prevails.

The Report, based on witness testimony, documents the methods of physical torture, which include beating, whipping and assault in 100 per cent of the cases; sexual torture including rape, molestation and violence to genitals in 60 per cent of the cases; and, psychological and environmental torture such as solitary confinement were reported as being" highly prevalent."

Query: Will President Rouhani undertake to investigate and put an end to this widespread use of torture and related impunity?

3. The Repression and Persecution of Religious and Ethnic Minorities
The plight of the Baha'i -- the largest religious minority in Iran -- is a looking glass into the plight of religious and ethnic minorities in general and the criminalization of innocence in particular.

Simply put, the persecution and prosecution of the Baha'i is a case study of the systematic, if not systemic, character of Iranian injustice, including: arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention; false charges such as "spreading corruption on Earth" and "espionage for foreign elements"; torture in detention; and show trials devoid of any due process. More than 200 Baha'i have been executed -- the entire Baha'i leadership is now imprisoned -- and the Iranian leadership has sought to disenfranchise the Baha'i from participation in all aspects of Iranian life.

In contrast to President Rouhani's musings of greater tolerance for religious minorities, Supreme Leader Khameini's fatwa (a religious edict) issued last month calls for Iranians to avoid any interactions with members of the Baha'i faith, whom he described as "deviant and misleading."

Query: Will President Rouhani end the social, cultural, and political exclusion of the Baha'i and other persecuted and repressed religious minorities?

4. Political Prisoners and the Assault on Civil Society
Despite the release of eleven political prisoners last week -- including the iconic human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudh -- and the report today that Iran has released an additional 80 political prisoners, there are still some 2,000 political prisoners in Iran. Among them are the leadership of ethnic and religious minorities, human rights defenders, students, journalists, bloggers, artists, trade unionists, members of the political opposition and civil society leaders generally speaking.

Query: Will President Rouhani honour his promise to release Iranian political prisoners? Will he grant them -- including Nasrin Sotoudeh -- the freedom to champion the cases and causes of those imprisoned?

5. The Persistent and Pervasive Assault on Women
While Rouhani has spoken eloquently of gender equality -- and Article 20 of the Iranian Constitution purports to protect it -- women face widespread and systematic discrimination in education, employment, state benefits, family relations, and access to justice. As Dr. Shaheed has noted, there is a dearth of female representation in decision-making roles.

Query: Will President Rouhani implement his promise to improve women's rights, ensure gender equality and establish the country's first Ministry of Women?

6. The 25th Anniversary of the '88 Massacre and the Culture of Impunity
At a time when we mark the 25th Anniversary of the Iranian regime's 1988 massacre of some 5,000 political prisoners, President Rouhani's appointment of Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi as Iran's new Minister of Justice is a dramatic and indeed scandalous example of the culture of impunity under Rouhani himself. Indeed, as the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center has reported, Pour-Mohammadi -- the Deputy Intelligence Minister from 1987 until 1999 -- was directly involved in the '88 prison massacre -- which a recent unanimous Canadian parliamentary resolution characterized as crimes against humanity; was involved in the extra-judicial assassination of political opponents; and was responsible for the unlawful killings of dissidents within Iran.

Query: Will Rouhani end the culture of impunity in Iran, remove Pour-Mohammadi from office, and provide appropriate redress to his victims -- the whole in the pursuit of truth, justice and accountability?

As Rouhani addresses the General Assembly and meets with world leaders this week, the absence of Ahmadinejad-like incendiary rhetoric -- while welcome -- should not be cause alone for celebration. It is Rouhani's deeds -- not just his words -- that will be the test of his commitment to a free Iran.

The writer is a Canadian Member of Parliament and a former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. He is co-Chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Group for Human Rights in Iran, co-Chair of the Iranian Political Prisoner Global Advocacy Project, and a member of the advisory board of United Against a Nuclear Iran. He is emeritus Professor of Law at McGill University.

Passengers in a public bus flash victory signs in a reaction of supporters of the Iranian presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani, as they attend a celebration gathering, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A female supporter of Iranian presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani, flashes a victory sign as she holds his poster during a celebration gathering in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A supporter of Iranian presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani holds his poster as another youth waves to a clergyman outside the campaign headquarters of Rouhani, in Tehran, a day after the election, Iran, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

An Iranian woman flashes the sign for victory as she holds a portrait of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani during celebrations for his victory in the Islamic Republic's presidential elections in downtown Tehran on June 15, 2013. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranians supporters of moderate presidential candidate, Hassan Rouhani flash the sign of victory holding a portrait of him as they wait for the final results outside his campaign headquarter in downtown Tehran on June 15, 2013. Rouhani has a clear lead in Iran's presidential election, garnering 51 percent of the vote at 65 percent of polling stations across the country, the interior ministry said. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

An Iranian woman holds a portrait of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani as she rides on a motorcycle along Valiasr street in Tehran on June 15, 2013 after he was elected as president. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

An Iranian woman holds her purple scarf, the campaign color of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani, as she celebrates along Valiasr street after he was elected as president on June 15, 2013, in the capital Tehran. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranians gather as they celebrate the victory of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhaniin the presidential elections at Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, on June 15, 2013. Iranian Interior Minister Mohammad Mostafa Najjar said Rouhani won outright with 18.6 million votes, or 50.68 percent. (ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranian supporters of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani who won the national elections, celebrate in downtown Tehran on June 15, 2013. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranians celebrate along Valiasr street, in the capital Tehran, on June 15, 2013, after moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani was elected as president. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

An Iranian woman celebrates the victory of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani (portrait) in the presidential elections at Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, on June 15, 2013. (ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranians gather to celebrate the victory of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani in the presidential elections at Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, on June 15, 2013. (ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

An Iranian woman celebrates the victory of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani in the presidential elections at Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, on June 15, 2013. (ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranians gather as they celebrate the victory of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani in the presidential elections at Vanak Square, in northern Tehran, on June 15, 2013. (ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranian women hold a portrait of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani who won the national election in downtown Tehran on June 15, 2013. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

A female supporter of Iranian presidential candidate Hasan Rouhani flashes a victory sign, as she holds his poster, during a celebration gathering, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

In front of a portrait of the late Iranian revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, presidential candidate Hasan Rowhani, a former top nuclear negotiator, center, gestures to his supporters at a rally in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

An Iranian woman holds a portrait of moderate presidential candidate Hassan Rouhani as she rides on a motorcycle along Valiasr street in Tehran on June 15, 2013 after he was elected as president. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)